Fast Forward

I've now given the basics of what's happened in the last 9 months and we'll fast forward through to the present.  Wow, I can't believe I've had my braces on for 9 months, it's incredible!  The time has flown by and to be very honest, even though I still don't like them, they aren't THAT bad.  Don't get me wrong, I absolutely can't wait for them to be off my teeth, but I'm dealing with them rather well, I think.  At first, I was embarrassed and didn't want anyone to notice them.  Now I have a great time at each visit to the orthodontist when I can pick fun colors!  I've got them, might as well show them off, right??  What's really crazy (to me, anyway) is that on March 30th, I have my next orthodontist appointment - this time to stop the movement on my teeth!  It's nothing to be giddy about though, it doesn't mean that I'm done with orthodontia just yet.  But, it does mean that we're on schedule for surgery.  What has to happen is that on the 30th, they'll put new wires on my teeth that will no longer allow my teeth to go anywhere at all.  They have to do this because I see the surgeon on April 7th and at that time, he'll take my final mouth molds.  He will actually use these final molds to do the surgery on them before he does it on me, so that he knows exactly what he has to do.  Brian and I will be seeing the surgeon together this time so he can explain everything to us in detail about what's going to happen before, during and after the actual operation itself.  There's SO much to know and learn.  What I do know so far is that I will be in the hospital for three days.  My mouth will not be wired, but banded shut.  I will have very little movement of my jaw for the next 6-8 weeks.  I will have to visit the surgeon once a week for 5 weeks and each time, he will apparently take more bands off as the healing progresses.  During the first 6-8 weeks, I will be on a strictly liquid diet and will eat for at least the first few weeks with a syringe.  Once some of the bands come off and I begin healing, I'll slowly be able to use a small spoon or sippy cup but the food will still need to be the consistency of a puree.  I will not be able to talk much at all (oh dear, what will I do???) and will use a dry erase board to communicate at first.   I will have a large amount of bruising and swelling throughout the first 6 weeks and they've said I'll lose 25-30 lbs with the liquid diet and once the swelling and bruising go away, I will look very different.  I hope to return to work 2-3 weeks after surgery.

What I've told you above is the main reason for this blog.  I will continue to post from this point forward as I know more.  I'll also be posting pictures.  What a change this is going to be!